Chapter 168: New Year’s Eve Dinner For Two
That day, Wang Heng got up very early because Lu Qi’s phone call came very early.
After washing up and packing, before his father left for work, he had already walked out the front door.
Arriving at the roadside, he saw a taxi waiting there. Standing by the car was a cool older sister type in a dashing trench coat—wasn’t that Lu Qi?
Seeing him approach, the icy frost of her cool demeanor melted a bit. Lu Qi opened the back door and smiled, “Let’s go.”
Wang Heng nodded, watching her get in first, then followed and sat in the back himself.
The driver yawned, stepped on the accelerator, and drove forward silently.
Wang Heng turned his head to look at Lu Qi, only to find her staring at him too, with a hint of reluctance in her eyes?
“I’m also going back to my hometown for the New Year,” Lu Qi said softly, “then returning to Rongdu for work. What about you? When are you going back to school?”
“Probably in two weeks. I don’t need to retake any exams, so no need to go back too early.” As Wang Heng said this, he couldn’t help thinking of his roommate Fu Hanwen. That guy had failed linear algebra and had to retake it, so he had to return to school a bit earlier.
Lu Qi asked again, “So, do you have any arrangements for next semester? Continue holding an idle position at Qin Meng’s place to earn some pocket money while attending classes normally at school?”
Wang Heng nodded. “Pretty much, that’s my arrangement.”
After that, both fell silent. Even with Lu Qi’s cleverness, she couldn’t find a better reason right now—they had already played together for two days in Edo, and this time she had even followed him to his hometown for a visit. What other reason could there be to increase their time together?
The city wasn’t large in scale, and after only a short silence, the taxi had already arrived at the destination.
While Lu Qi was paying the driver, Wang Heng had already picked up the suitcase, gotten out, and was standing at the roadside.
As soon as she got out of the car door, Wang Heng asked, “Where do you need me to take you?”
Lu Qi looked around. “Right here is fine.”
Wang Heng: “You should have said so earlier. I could have just gone straight back on that car.”
Before he finished speaking, Lu Qi extended her index finger and slowly shook it in front of his eyes.
“From now on, don’t use honorifics with me,” a shallow smile appeared on her exquisite face. “We’re good friends, aren’t we?”
Wang Heng also smiled. “Yeah, you… uh, you’re right.”
Lu Qi: “And you don’t have to call me Sister Lu either. Hearing you call me sis all the time makes me feel like I’m getting old.”
Wang Heng: “Then what should I call you?”
Lu Qi withdrew her hand, propping her delicate chin with her index finger, seemingly thinking seriously.
After a moment, she said, “Call me Qi Qi, like you would a close family member or friend.”
“Qi Qi?” Wang Heng’s mouth twitched.
He remembered that in the first playthrough, he had started calling her Qi Qi after the ambush battle in the office. And now, was this slightly dangerous sign about to begin already?
Lu Qi: “You don’t like it?”
Wang Heng considered it, then said solemnly, “I think friends are friends, bros are bros, but you have to know, I really respect you. It’s not just because you’re a bit older than me. More importantly, I owe my current situation to your initial recognition and trust. Calling you Sister Lu shows that trust, and it means that in my heart, you’re forever the most reliable and respectable older sister.”
After giving Pei Ningle’s younger sister card, he decisively issued a sister card to Lu Qi as well.
Following this train of thought, he figured he wouldn’t have to panic when facing Han Yixuan and Ye Xun later. He was Ye Xun’s tutor, so he gave her a student card. As for Han Yixuan, once she really became his personal investment assistant, he had a strict subordinate card ready for her.
Yep, all four female assassins were neatly arranged.
A flash of disappointment passed through Lu Qi’s eyes, but she said understandingly, “If you want to call me Sister Lu, then go ahead. Anyway, I need to get going.”
Wang Heng: “Alright, Sister Lu, safe travels!”
————
Two days after seeing off Lu Qi, Lunar New Year’s Eve arrived.
That day, his father’s company finally had its holiday, so he could stay home and relax properly…
“Hit that druid, hit him! Control him, you guys! Warrior, root him!”
Wang Heng had just finished reading and come out of the bedroom when he heard his father’s roar. He silently walked behind his father and glanced at the screen.
It looked like the situation wasn’t going well.
So Wang Heng sat on the sofa and pulled out his mobile phone to browse stock market news.
A long while later, his father let out a long sigh, took off his headphones, and turned around to discover his son on the sofa.
“What are we eating tonight?”
Wang Heng looked up. “You’re asking me? Tonight’s New Year’s Eve dinner.”
His father scratched his head. “Yeah, no arrangements…”
Wang Heng shrugged. “Then like last year, go out and find a restaurant to settle it.”
His father looked at his son, sighed again, and nodded.
Unlike many other families, Wang Heng had few relatives growing up. Especially after his parents divorced when he was young and contact with his mother’s side was cut off, the word “relatives” had almost vanished from his life.
His father Wang Jian was the only child for three generations, and the older generation had passed away early, so Wang Jian had no relatives. By now, those distant relatives from alternate generations were hundreds or thousands of miles away, hard to meet again, so they had naturally faded. For Wang Heng, there were basically no relatives.
The father and son walked out of the residential area, strolling leisurely along the street.
Suddenly, his father asked softly, “Don’t you think I’m pretty much a failure sometimes?”
Wang Heng looked at him in surprise, feeling a bit hesitant—honestly, he should suggest his father drop the “sometimes.” Think about it: getting wiped like that in a team fight, playing worse in the game than in reality.
His father continued, “You don’t need to comfort me, I know it in my heart. Back then, your mother…”
Wang Heng interrupted, “Didn’t we say long ago not to bring it up?”
His father gave a bitter smile. “Yeah, on New Year’s Eve, let’s talk about something happy. You’ve earned so much, what are your plans? Continue investing in bitcoin?”
Wang Heng: “No, I’ll invest in the stock market.”
Hearing this, his father was stunned and quickly advised, “The stock market has risks too, and you don’t know, I tried it back then, turned fifty thousand into thirty thousand, nearly got screwed over by the dog dealers!”
“Rest assured, my stock trading will definitely be different from yours. I’ll only act when I have certainty…” Wang Heng pointed to a hot pot restaurant across the street. “By the way, do you want to eat hot pot?”
The aroma wafting from the hot pot restaurant could be smelled even from across the street. The place wasn’t far from their home, had been open for over a year, but the father and son had never eaten there. Going in tonight seemed like a good choice.
His father: “I’m fine either way. If you want to eat, let’s go in.”
Wang Heng nodded, about to speak, when he heard the notification sound from his mobile phone in his pocket. Pulling it out, he saw a Q message from Hamster.
【That hot pot restaurant has Han Yixuan and her family inside.】
The worldline correction mechanism was terrifying…
Wang Heng put away his mobile phone and said to his father, “Thought about it, let’s skip it. I just got back from Rongdu; the hot pot here probably isn’t as good as there.”
Even if he changed strategy and stopped futilely avoiding it, Wang Heng didn’t want to go meet Han Yixuan’s family. What if it was like with Pei Ningle’s parents, adding trouble for himself?
————
The next chapter will definitely be out in the early morning… For good sleep habits, classmates can go to bed first and read it tomorrow when you wake up.
